The Effects of Adherence to Asian Values and Extraversion on Cardiovascular Reactivity: A Comparison Between Asian and European Americans

This study investigated the effects of personality type and ethnicity on reactivity to stressful stimuli by examining acculturation and adherence to Asian American cultural values as moderators. Twenty-two Asian American and twenty-two European American students performed a mental arithmetic task and a speech task while cardiovascular (CV) reactivity was monitored. Level of extraversion, acculturation, and adherence to Asian American values were assessed. As predicted, Asian Americans exhibited less CV reactivity to stressful stimuli and lower levels of extraversion than European Americans. Support was found for adherence to Asian American values as a moderator of the relationship between level of extraversion and CV reactivity to stressful stimuli. The results illustrate that being connected to Asian American culture has protective value for less extraverted individuals, as adherence to Asian American values predicted less CV reactivity to stress. These findings shed light on how culture influences the form and function of personality and can influence physiological reactivity to stress. To the best of my knowledge, no research has investigated whether personality type has an effect on stress responses in Asian Americans and examined the differences in responses based on cultural adherence. ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 3 The Effects of Adherence to Asian Values and Extraversion on Cardiovascular Reactivity: A Comparison Between Asian and European Americans Personality is shaped in many ways and has countless influences including social, cultural, and biological. Past research has illuminated differences amongst extraverts and introverts in the area of stress response (Fowles, Roberts, & Nagel, 1977; Hinton & Craske, 1977; Kaiser, Hinton, Krohne, Stewart, & Burton, 1995; Sipprelle, Ascough, Detrio, & Horst, 1977). However, no research, to the best of my knowledge, has investigated whether personality type has an effect on stress responses in Asian Americans and examined the differences in responses based on cultural adherence. Thus, the current study aims to examine the effects of acculturation, adherence to Asian American values, and level of extraversion on CV reactivity in response to stressful stimuli. A common model to describe personality is the Five Factor Model, which proposes that openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism comprise the fundamental architecture of personality traits (Costa & McCrae, 1985; John, Donahue, & Kentle, 1991). This study focuses on the extraversion/introversion dimension, which consists of several facets, including gregariousness, assertiveness, activity, excitementseeking, positive emotions, and warmth. Jung (1971) proposed that extraverts and introverts differ fundamentally in their relations to the world. According to Jung (1971), the introvert reflects on and internalizes potential conflicts between the self and the world, whereas the extravert acts upon the world and seeks to reduce potential conflicts between the self’s goals and current reality (Brebner & Cooper, 1978). From this perspective, introverts are more reflective and harmonious, whereas extraverts are more active and individualistic. ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 4 There are both universal and culture-specific aspects of variation in personality (Triandis & Suh, 2002). A cross-cultural perspective on personality accepts the universality of personality traits, such as extraversion, but also argues that culture influences patterns of behavior including the form and function of personality (Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Triandis & Suh, 2002). Research suggests that Asian Americans are less likely than their European American counterparts to be extraverted and that this difference may be due to differing cultural values (Oyserman, Coon, & Kemmelmeier, 2002; Song & Kwon, 2012). Abe and Zane (1990) found that foreign-born Asians had lower levels of extraversion than American-born Asians and that both groups of Asians (foreign and American-born) had lower levels of extraversion than European Americans. Similarly, Mooradian and Swan (2006) found that extraversion scores differed nationally and that Chinese and Japanese individuals scored lower in extraversion than American individuals. These cultural differences in levels of extraversion reflect larger cultural values regarding individualism and collectivism. Broadly put, American values favor extraversion more and Asian values favor extraversion less (Abe & Zane, 1990). Asian cultures tend to emphasize collectivism, whereas individualism is highly regarded in America (Safdar et al., 2009). In Western cultures, children are taught to attend to the self, to appreciate one’s difference from others, and to understand the importance of asserting the self (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). In many Eastern cultures or Asian cultures, children are taught to attend to fitting in with others and to understand the importance of harmonious interdependence (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). For those with interdependent construals of the self, both the expression and the experience of emotions and motives may be significantly shaped and governed by a consideration of the reactions of others (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). Introverts display reflective and non-assertive qualities that are similar to values emphasized and respected in ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 5 Asian cultures, which may explain why Asians and Asian Americans score lower in extraversion and higher in interdependence and collectivism than European Americans (Abe & Zane, 1990; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Safdar et al., 2009; Triandis & Suh, 2002). Research suggests that physiological reactivity to laboratory stressors is influenced by level of extraversion (Hinton & Craske, 1977; Fowles et al., 1977; Kaiser et al., 1995). Hinton and Craske (1977) observed that introverts showed a greater increase in heart rate relative to extraverts when performing a mental task, illustrating that introverts had greater CV reactivity in response to stress than did extraverts. Stelmack and Mandelzys (1975) showed that introverts had a larger mean increase in pupil diameter from prestimulus conditions than did extraverts. According to Lowenstein and Lowenfeld (1969), pupil diameter indicates a threat response. Thus, the results of Stelmack and Mandelzys (1975) can be interpreted as an indication that introverts show greater reactivity to perceived threats, as indicated by a greater papillary threat response. Little research has been conducted recently to confirm these findings. As such, the current study aims to further this research and investigate whether these findings are still relevant. Understanding that Asians generally display lower levels of extraversion relative to European Americans and that lower levels of extraversion have been associated with greater CV reactivity, it seems possible that Asians would be more likely to display greater CV reactivity than European Americans. However, Shen, Stroud, and Niaura (2004) found that Asian Americans showed reduced CV reactivity to laboratory stressors when compared to European Americans. The study done by Shen et al. (2004) is the only study to my knowledge that directly compared CV stress responses between Asian and European Americans and it focused only on ethnicity and not on acculturation. Acculturation occurs when two or more cultures interact; it is ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 6 the process of cultural and psychological change that results from the meeting of cultures (Suinn, Rickard-Figueroa, Lew, & Vigil, 1987). Cultural factors may explain ethnic differences in personality type (level of extraversion) and physiological reactivity to stress. The current study assessed level of acculturation and adherence to Asian American values to investigate whether maintaining Asian cultural values has an influence on level of extraversion and stress reactivity in Asian Americans. Kim, Li, and Ng (2005) identified five values that are emphasized in Asian cultures: collectivism, conformity to norms, emotional self-control, family recognition through achievement, and humility. Cultures differ in how they encourage and reinforce emotional responding, resulting in differences in which emotional responses are appropriate under what circumstances (Kitayama, Markus, & Kurokawa, 2000; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Matsumoto, 1990). Asian cultures often hold beliefs about the proper display of emotions (Kitayama et al., 2000; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Matsumoto, 1990), which may impact level of extraversion and reactivity to stress. The cultural norms surrounding expressions such as happiness, sadness, anger, and fear differ from American norms. Safdar et al. (2009) found that Japanese cultural norms permit the expression of powerful emotions such as anger, contempt, and disgust significantly less than American and Canadian cultural norms. In addition, individuals in the Japanese sample generally felt they should express positive emotions, like happiness and surprise, significantly less than individuals in the Canadian sample. The Asian value of emotional self-control may play a role in personal expression as well as stress reactivity. Collectivistic cultures, such as, Japanese culture value groups over individuals and promote harmony and cooperation within the group rather than individual assertion (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). Emotions are seen more as interactive experiences reflecting the social context ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 7 rather than the inner self. The culture demands control over the expression of emotion because it is the basis for forming an assessment of the relationship between the self and others (Mesquita, 2001). Collectivistic cultures mainly emphasize the maintenance of cohesion within the group and therefore, control of emotion holds a high precedence (Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Mesquita, 2001). In individualistic cultures, the individual is viewed as the most important social element. Such cultures value and promote independence, competitiveness, and uniqueness (Chen & West, 2008). Emotions are viewed as important personal experiences. In these cultures, emotions are seen as inner states that are expressed impulsively. For example, in American culture, expressions of emotion are viewed as expressions of individuality and encouraged as outward displays (Matsumoto, Takeuchi, Andayani, Kouznetsova, & Krupp, 1998). They are often exaggerated to strengthen the sentiment behind them. Kitayama et al. (2000) found that subjective well-being and positive feelings were associated with interdependence and interpersonal engagement for Japanese, but with independence and interpersonal disengagement for Americans. Butler, Lee, and Gross (2007) found that for Americans holding Western European values, habitual emotional suppression was associated with self-protective goals and negative emotion. Experimentally elicited emotional suppression resulted in reduced interpersonal responsiveness during face-to-face interaction, negative perceptions of partners, and hostile behavior. These deleterious effects were lesser when individuals holding Asian values suppressed emotions, and these disparities were mediated by cultural differences in the responsiveness of the suppressors, suggesting that the negative social impacts of emotional suppression may be moderated by cultural values. The current study assessed level of ASIAN VALUES, EXTRAVERSION, AND STRESS REACTIVITY 8 individualism and collectivism as well as emotional self-control to investigate whether they had an influence on stress reactivity and level of extraversion. This study aimed to extend the literature on effects of personality type and ethnicity on reactivity to stress by examining acculturation and adherence to cultural values as moderators of relationships between these variables. Based on the findings of Shen et al. (2004), I hypothesize that Asian Americans will illustrate less CV reactivity in response to stressful stimuli than European Americans. Based on the findings of Abe and Zane (1990), I hypothesize that Asian Americans will have lower levels of extraversion than European Americans. Further, I hypothesize that level of acculturation will moderate the effect of extraversion on CV reactivity in Asian Americans.